A Blast from the Past

This piece of writing was originally published on October 26, 2007. My son was eleven at the time and I was free to write about myself and him. The blog is now defunct, out of his teenage request to not have Mum ruin his life, at least online. I'm reposting again for the holiday season.

He Does What?!

I’m about to make a confession, a confession about a secret desire. No one, not my parents or my best friends, not even my husband knows. I have an unbelievable decades-old crush on Rod Stewart. Right about now, my mother is saying "WHO?" my sisters are saying, "EEEWWW!" and my husband is saying, "WHY?" This is why no one knows and now every one knows.

I’ve had a longstanding thing about Mr. Stewart that began with the first time I heard "Maggie May." That voice! THAT HAIR! (You may have already noted the follicle similarity between Mr. Stewart and my own online avatar.)

Mom and Dad kept a tight control over the stereo and LP expenditures in our house while I was growing up. Basically, the choices boiled down to their way or the highway. While I lived with the Partridge Family, Neil Sedaka, Barry Manilow and Billy Joel, I loved the Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac, and Queen, and I lusted after Rod Stewart. I dared not bring any of these bad boys of rock and roll anywhere near my mother’s Ethan Allen living room, but I never stopped drinking in every song played on the radio.

I stopped dead when Rod was played over the airwaves. I was capable of no sane thought or action. His British accented growl could make "sardines and toast" sound like something naughty. I would continue to pour milk into over flowing glasses. I would mow over Mom’s flowers. I would walk into telephone poles. I was incapable of any coordinated movement when that whiskey soaked gravelly voice flowed from the radio right into my soul.

No one noticed that I had an uncontrolled desire for this man. It was covered by a teenage awkwardness that began at the age of nine and ended at thirty-five. I had glasses, a bad haircut, chronic sinus drip, and a passion for reading which pretty much sealed up my social life and ensured that my parents left me very much alone. I was, however, skinny, real skinny, model skinny, but this was only a temporary tease for my adolescent ego. I knew, by looking at family photos, that I was headed to become an apple dumpling with cellulite.

Despite all the outward negatives, I did have one vivid imagination. In my mind, some day, some how…I would get to see Rod Stewart in concert and he might even look out to my section of the stadium and…and…

As I grew older, these fantasies grew older. They involved alcohol, cigarettes, velvet, and a tawdry lifestyle that I could never bring myself to attain. But in my mind, I would still gladly give my body, cellulite and all, if only….

Now fast forward to the present, I don’t think of Rod Stewart much any more, but every now and then, his songs are played on "oldies" radio. Such sin, Rod Stewart played on oldies radio. A quiet blush still crosses my face with "Tonight’s the Night" and I still love the name Maggie. Losing ten pounds will always result is a riotous round of "Do you Think I’m Sexy" shouted into my hairbrush as I gyrate about the bedroom dodging shoes and piles of laundry. But it has all ended today, in the post. It was a crushing blow.

My son’s "Model Railroader Magazine" arrived today. "Hey Mom, do you know Rod Stewart?" I’m thinking I’ve got to sing more quietly in the shower. "Hey, MOM! Did you hear me? Do you know Rod Stewart?"

"I know of him, Matt." I said, truthfully.

"Guess what! He’s a model railroader, just like me!"

"HE DOES WHAT?!",  I screamed. My fantasy life crumbled as I stood in the driveway staring at a feature article about my favorite sex symbol’s hobby. For God sakes, he even takes his paints and glue on tour with him. The champagne, the smoky lounges, the bear skin rug, the entire fantasy is now lying at my feet like so much spilled rail bed ballast. It’s all replaced by an image of an English eccentric in a railroad cap painting age and tarnish over miniature plastic buildings.

"I’m proud to be a railway modeler. It means more to me to be on the cover of Model Railroader than to be on the cover of a music magazine" - Rod Stewart, Model Railroader, December 2007

Rod, sweetheart, you are in my heart and in my soul, but why did you have to end it this way?

Tie Your Shoestrings Well

I will be the very first to admit that I’ve stolen the title of this blog from Werner Herzog. Mr. Herzog was interviewed on Science Friday and this is part of his answer to the despondency over the American election results. He said in part, “Tie your shoestrings well. Keep on walking.”

I think this an idea that can be applied much farther than consolation to those who are grieving their political losses. For those who have lost, they must find a way forward, listen to the lessons learned and hear the anger expressed through the voting process.

It also speaks to the winners who now carry an enormous responsibility for everyone. Take care that all are carried forward, not just the rich but the poor, the hungry, and the sick. They also must find their way forward and heal the anger that elected them and the anger spawned by their victory.

Outside the political arena, we all need to tie our shoes well. Those that grieve the loss of a loved one, struggle to face each day. They wake each morning and wonder how are they going to get through the waking hours when raw grief rides their backs like a hidden leopard ready to pounce and tear them limb from limb on the subway, at work, walking alone down the street. They wait out the day, in fear, being hunted by grief, until the sleep finally pulls them down to numbing oblivion for a few short hours. Each day, they tie their shoes well and keep walking among us, who are unconscious of their pain.

Those who are sick wade through the physical and psychological pain of illness. It is a long and lonely road full of bureaucracy and sacrifice. They must face new procedures, inadequate treatment plans, and expenses that no one should worry about while ill.  Each day they tie their shoes well and keep walking.

Parents work hard each day to provide food, shelter,  and clothing for their children. Some in the face of joblessness and homelessness. Parenting is tough even when those things are satisfied. I don’t know any parent who hasn’t knelt down at the end of a tough day and asked for the strength to carry on. Sometime the next day, they tie their shoestrings well and walk on.

We each have our own burdens, our own life stories, our own weakness, strengths and passions. Our shoes are very different one from another. That is why another famous proverb comes to mind about not judging each other until we have walked a mile in their shoes. I think I’ll keep this old proverb in mind as well as the new. These are my shoes, well worn and well tied. I’ll keep walking one foot in front of the other this day and the next but I’ll also mind those beside me who’s shoes may be broken or who are barefoot or who have stumbled and fallen.

The White Paneled Van

Some times life is sweet. I have to preface this story by saying there are many places and people in Belgium where the traditional roles of men and women are still upheld and those who cross these lines are gaped at with awe and fear.

Today, DHL "found" my house or rather a DHL subcontractor found my house. Apparently, my enraged email to them yesterday morning about missing deliveries found its way through the proper channels and into the hands of some poor, unlucky sod who's job it was to "cleanup" DHL's little messes. 

So this afternoon, an unmarked, windowless, white paneled van lumbered up my driveway; the kind of van always used in horror flicks. As the driver spied me in the yard, he slowed down....reeaaallll slow....I just knew he was taking in a good look and I'm thinking, "Lord almighty, another one has lost his way using his GPS and not his mind again." (The maps are incorrect for some systems in my little corner of the world.)

 So, since he was having a good look, I gave him a little more....get your mind outta the gutter. I was dressed like a farm hand going out to milk..jeans, husband's flannel shirt, muck boots and a knit skull cap. I raised the sledge and slammed the wedge through the wood and the splits flew across the path of the truck. He slammed on his brakes and I picked up the axe, put the sharpening stone in my back pocket, wiped the sweat off my face and sauntered up to the van while running my finger along the edge of the axe as if to test the blade. I can't sharpen a pencil, but I can act like I can if an unmarked white paneled van is my driveway.

I was greeted by a small, sweaty man sliding nervously out of the driver's seat. The guy was shaking. Papers were flying. A copy of my email fluttered down to my feet. "Attention client en colore" was written in red ink at the top. He stutters,  "Mme Diedra...." I cut him off with a gutteral "Oui" in backwoods Quebecois ...and then out comes a flood gate of French apology and he shakes and sweats himself around to the back of the van. Two boxes appear and at this point, I realize this poor guy is from DHL and my Christmas boxes have arrived. But this guy is so far gone in his imagination, I might as well keep up the pretense. He pushes the packages in my direction and I, with my hands full of lumberjack axe, grunt and point to the ground next to the van. He can't break his sight line with me and shoves the boxes to the side as if they contain TNT. I sign while he utters more French apologies and I remain silent. I nod a g'day to the man. Stepping once more up to the fire wood, I split the next log  perfectly sending another piece flying just in front of the van. The man spun gravel to get the heck outta there.

I'm not exactly sure if the house is going to back in DHL's good graces, but thank you Dad, for treating me like a son, at least some of the time. My skill bank is vast and large and sometimes put to messing with people's heads. Forgive me.

A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.

-Robert A. Heinlein

I came across this quote today.  I think is speaks about the education we all wish we had as students. None of those things are easily quantifiable by a machine scored exam. They are only accomplished by mentorship and practice. We need more of the generalists in action.

New Look 6808

 My tulle skirt needs a blouse, an navy linen blouse. This one is New Look 6808. I made a size 16 with a FBA to a C-cup.

 Here is "Judy" wearing the ensemble.

And here is me, before a straight line wind from a summer thunderstorm ended all hopes of outdoor photos for the day.

Endive Salad

Mother-in-law's Endive Salad

This is a recipe where there are no exact quantities but rather some approximate ratios to observe. You may adjust the quantities based on your personal taste or ingredient availability.

Ingredients:

   Curly endive

   Two or three small boiled, cooled and peeled white potatoes.

   White vinegar

   Pumpkin seed oil

   Salt

 

 

Wash and tear enough curly endive to fill your salad bowl.  Slice the potatoes thinly. Make a dressing. The pumpkin seed oil is strongly flavored and the amount of salt is high for the salad. You really want to have just a small amount of dressing. For the salad pictured above, which is four generous portions, I used 1 Tablespoon of pumpkin seed oil, 2 tsp white vinegar, and 1/2 tsp of salt. Blend well with a fork and dress the salad. Toss well before serving.

Black Radish Pickles

Today I made some quick refrigerator pickles with a black radish. The radish was quickly sliced and a hot pickling brine was poured over the radish slices, which had been packed into jars.

These are not canned in the traditional sense, although I used some canning jars for easy  preparation. They went right into the refrigerator and they will be ready to eat in 24hrs.

No, you're correct. It's not sewing. Sometimes most of my work week never makes it to my sewing studio. I'm thinking about sharing some of those other areas of my work life.

Un Chapeau

                                                                                                  et un abeille...

Wordless Wednesday

A Very, Very Basic Sewing Kit

Are you ready to put together your first basic sewing kit? You should already have the your full length mirror and you should have put together your ironing equipment.  You've cleaned out your wardrobe, created a shopping list and perhaps even have a place for clothing ideas and inspirations. Wow, you've accomplished a lot. Now let's get ready to begin to learn to sew.

Your ironing equipment should consist of an good quality iron, a sturdy padded cotton covered ironing board, a cotton or linen press cloth, a water spray bottle, and a Turkish towel.Of these basic ironing things there are several which don't necessarily need to be purchased from a sewing store or be brand new. I have already stated the linen press cloth can be an old tea towel. You'll want the smooth kind of towel and not the hand towels made from terry cloth. A water spray bottle is probably hidden about the house also. Look around and reuse items. Most everyone has an old bath towel in a light color than will serve as extra padding for your ironing. If not, check a garage sale, thrift shop, or Mom's basement for these items.

Now for the most basic sewing kit list, many of these items you may already have. Gather them up and put them all together in a box.

The Box:  Use a shoe box or an old cookie tin. Many households have old plastic containers from past organizational sprees that can be reused. You may even have a dress box or shirt box in the gift wrapping stash. If all else fails, save the cardboard box from your last mail order. My point here is: do not go out and buy things. There are plenty of holidays to come when you will need gift suggestions for your nearest and dearest. A fancy sewing box is a great gift.....AT A LATER TIME!


I can't tell  you how many times I've gone to a garage sale  and have seen an old sewing kit in one of these. Many of you will have one of these tins about the house. It's perfect for your sewing/mending kit. It's dry, dust free and you keep your tools away from your kids' crafting and any thing else going on in the house that will scatter your hard work to the four corners of the world.




 A Six or Twelve Inch Ruler: You probably have one around the house. Choose a sturdy one with clear easy to read markings. A clear plastic ruler is good. There are many fancy rulers available, but to start your sewing collection, simple is best and the kind you might send to school with your child is perfectly fine.

A Yardstick: Again, you may have one around the house. Locate it. You will need it if you hem a skirt or draw a long line on fabric for home decorating. 

A 60" Vinyl Tape Measure: This is an absolute necessity. If you never move your sewing beyond sewing on buttons and fixing hems, you still need to know what size you'll need when ordering things. Buy the best quality vinyl tape measure you can afford from a good sewing store. Do not rely on the tape measure included in prepackaged beginner sewing kits as they are generally only 36" and that is not adequate.  A five foot measure is far more useful.

Pins: I would choose a box of glass head  pins for a beginner. They are easy to see on the floor and easy to see in the fabric and easy to use for the untrained and awkward beginner hand. They will not rust and the glass heads will not melt when you accidentally iron them. If your pins do not come in a box, find a small container from the household that will served to hold them. A tin lozenge container comes to mind or a small plastic food storage box will serve just as well.

Needles: Right next to the display of pins will be needles, buy a small assorted selections. Ten to twenty needles will last a lifetime for a mending kit.

Scissors: An entire blog post could be written about scissors and internet memes exist about unfortunate family members who use a sewist's dedicated scissors for something other than fabric. There is one simple rule for fabric shears. USE THEM FOR FABRIC AND THREAD ONLY! This means a dedicated pair of dressmaking shears and they are an expensive investment, if you are buying quality. Quality 8" dressmaking shears start at $30 and move up from there. Save this as a gift suggestion and know that the best shears will last you for a lifetime.
              For an absolute beginner, however, I recommend buying a new pair of $10-$15 dollar dressmaking shears from the large sewing store or online. If you are particularly budget minded, a new pair of "orange" handled scissors from the office supply store will be just fine. The point, here, is that they are new! Don't go to the kitchen drawer and re-purpose old scissors. Even the new "orange" scissors will suffice for cutting fabric for your first six or seven projects before becoming to dull. By that time, you will know if sewing is going to be a long term love or a see ya' later frustration. At that time, you can make the investment for new high quality shears and "retire" your old scissors to be your paper scissors in the sewing room. If you are saying goodbye to sewing then your basic sewing kit can remain in its' box as a simple home mending kit. It will be ready and stocked for all your small clothing emergencies.
Seam Gauge: A seam gauge can be found in any reasonably sized sewing notions department. Buy one with clear markings. This useful little tool will help you to set hems and size seams. You can use a ruler for these jobs, but a seam gauge can be set to the called for width and you can mark and move along without re-reading the measurement. It will be inexpensive, even for a good quality one and a worthwhile addition to your sewing kit.

Fray Check: This can be a life saver, if used properly. The trick to this is the old adage, "A stitch in time saves nine." In other words, catching a small torn seam, hole or fray at the first sight will only require a stitch or two and a drop of  fray check and you will have saved the garment. Ignoring your mending, wastes your precious clothing dollar.

Seam Ripper: A seam ripper does exactly as the name implies. You will use this to open sewn seams and pick out mistakes. It happens to all of us, even experienced sewers keep their seam rippers right next to their scissors. There are many shapes and styles. Choose one that suits you. They do dull after a time and need to be replaced, but not that often.

Small Assortment of Safety Pins: Very useful for holding things together, re-threading strings through casings, and pinning bra straps to the undersides of blouses. Keep them in another small box. Don't mix them in with your pins.

Small Assortment of Buttons: I actually don't think you should buy an assortment of buttons, but rather find a small container and begin saving your own buttons. Those extras that come with your coat and get put in a drawer and lost. They belong here. A shirt you have torn beyond repair should be salvaged for its' buttons. The same with other clothing that is going in the garbage. Look them over for buttons, hooks and eyes and reusable zippers. You will be amazed at what you can save from your cast offs.

A mechanical pencil: I suggest a mechanical pencil because it remains sharp all the time. Keeping extra lead in you sewing box will help you if you end up doing a lot of sewing.

A chalk pencil: Sewers chalk and erasable markers both fall into the fabric marking category. For a beginner a chalk pencil will help you make marks on dark fabric or fabric which you might not want to get wet.

An erasable sewing marker: An erasable marker, works well on light colored fabric and is removed by water. Usually, after finishing a garment, I'll wash the marks out in the laundry. But you can also remove them with your spray water bottle at the iron. A marker will be under $5 and often you can get them on sale. It is a luxury item, but extremely useful.

Assorted Thread: For your basic sewing kit, your should choose some spools of sewing thread. Choose small spools in basic colors. I would suggest white and black thread at the minimum, then depending on your own wardrobe colors add others. Begin by considering khaki or beige, navy, grey, and red. Thread for growing children's school uniforms in the proper colors would be a smart choice also.


A final word about prepackaged sewing kits...just don't! Rarely are all the components of good quality and rarely are these a good buy. Just put it down and buy the best individual items you can afford from the list above. You will have a kit you can use for a lifetime and a very good start on your sewing room supplies.
 

New Skirt New Look 6583

The summer sewing really hasn't been too bad despite having to service all the sewing machines and taking a vacation that was twice the normal length.

Here's a tulle skirt project. I really like the fully gathered tulle skirts shown with casual tees and denim jackets. The effect is a little too young for me, but this is an attempt to bring the look to a more grown up ensemble. I chose a grey tulle with a sedate silver grey lining.

I used New Look 6583 as a pattern except I added two very deep box pleats; one each side of center on the front and on the back. The pleats gave more fullness to the  skirt at the hem while remaining flat and trim at the waist. This was quick sewing project. I have made this skirt several times. I hardly need to look at the instructions any longer. 

Now that I've got the tulle skirt, the up to the minute look of a tee shirt and denim is just not me and far too youthful. I think a different kind of blouse is called for here. Hmmmm....off to stash!